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Missouri Catholic Conference Office Closed Due to COVID-19
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The Missouri Catholic Conference office will be closed to the public until at least the end of next week. Our staff members are working remotely at this time, and are still available to answer your questions and address your needs. If you need to reach the MCC, please send an email to mocatholic@mocatholic.org. Be sure to list your first and last name and contact information and we will respond as soon as we are able.
We urge our MOCAN members to continue to follow CDC safety guidelines to limit the spread of COVID-19. You are all in our prayers as we face these uncertain times together. |
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House Passes FY 2020 Supplemental Budget Bill Including Federal Funds in Response to COVID-19
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 Before recessing for spring break, the House took up and passed the federal reimbursement allowance bill that is renewed annually and funds state healthcare programs such as Medicaid. It also passed an annual resolution that funds legislative aids and staffers for the full calendar year, as an outdated state law only provides for their employment during the legislative session.
In addition, the House debated and passed a supplemental budget bill to keep state government funded for the remainder of the 2020 fiscal year that includes an additional $40 million of federal and state funding to cover coronavirus preparedness and response until the end of June. Debate on the supplemental bill focused on the evolving crisis and whether additional funding will be necessary in the coming months, and whether legislators should appropriate more money from state coffers now given the circumstances. The bill ultimately passed the House by a vote of 147-3, and will now have to be approved by the Senate and signed by Governor Parson before it becomes law. |
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Missouri General Assembly Hits Pause Button on Session Over Coronavirus Concerns
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 Last week, the Missouri Senate recessed a week ahead of its regularly scheduled spring break over concerns related to the spread of coronavirus. This week, the Missouri House deferred voting on the FY 2021 state budget due to concerns that state revenues will fall short of projections that were the basis for appropriation bills considered and passed by the House Budget Committee earlier this week. These bills now sit on the House calendar for debate and it is unclear when the House will take them up, as the House adjourned this week for spring break with no clear return date set. |
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Missouri Supreme Court Issues Ruling in Response to COVID-19
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 In response to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the Missouri Supreme Court announced this week that it has suspended in-person proceedings in all appellate and circuit courts, including all associate, family, juvenile, municipal and probate divisions through April 3. The order may be extended as circumstances warrant, court officials said in a news release.
The court's order authorized the presiding judges of the state's appellate and circuit courts to determine the manner in which the listed exceptions to in-person proceedings are to be conducted. Further, the order gives presiding judges discretion to excuse jurors or other individuals who cannot or should not appear as a result of risks associated with COVID-19. |
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Spiritual Resources During Suspension of Mass
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 In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all four Missouri bishops, along with many of their brother bishops from around the globe, have suspended Mass and other public events for the next few weeks.
As we pause from in-person community gathering, we turn to new ways of spiritual congregation. While we cannot attend Mass at our local parishes during this time, thanks to modern technology we can attend Mass virtually. Here is a link to daily Mass from Bishop Barron's chapel. We encourage you to join him at 7:15 each morning! To keep up with what your diocese has announced regarding Masses and gatherings, please visit your Missouri diocesan website.
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The Pro-Life Movement in Missouri at the 25th Anniversary of Evangelium Vitae
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 On March 25, 2020, the Church celebrates the 25th anniversary of the papal encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), written by Pope St. John Paul II. The encyclical, which calls all of us to promote a culture of life, continues to address present-day challenges to life including abortion, contraception, capital punishment, and euthanasia. As we approach this anniversary, we can see the impact that the pro-life movement in Missouri has had in establishing a culture of life in the state.
As we reported in January, a preliminary report from the Department of Health and Senior Services showed that abortions in Missouri had dropped by around fifty percent from 2018 to 2019. While we await the final numbers for 2019, a report last week indicated that abortions have "virtually halted" at the last active abortion clinic in Missouri. In a report to NPR, Planned Parenthood indicated that only three abortions were conducted at Reproductive Health Services of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region in February. That number was down from 174 abortions conducted in February of 2019.
However, as the article points out, some Missouri women are now going into Illinois for their abortions, as that state has fewer pro-life protections. So while we should celebrate the dramatic decrease in abortions in the state, we must continue to, as Pope St. John Paul II reminded us 25 year ago, "offer this world of ours new signs of hope, and work to ensure that justice and solidarity will increase and that a new culture of human life will be affirmed, for the building of an authentic civilization of truth and love." |
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This week, Governor Parson announced the first casualty of the coronavirus in Missouri. The patient was a resident of Boone County who was over 60 years of age and had recently traveled overseas, where they presumptively acquired the illness. 
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is easy to let important events slide by the wayside. But as we reminded you in our last MCC Weekly Update, 2020 Census Day is approaching, and we cannot neglect our duty to respond. 
As news coverage remains focused on the spread of COVID-19, it can be hard to think about the positives happening around the globe. But among the gloom, there is plenty of good.